“Tennessee Movie Theater Attack Suspect Had Been Committed 4 Times”

A man wielding a hatchet and shooting pepper spray was killed at a Tennessee movie theater after police responding to reports of a disturbance shot him as he tried to go out the back door, Nashville police said.

Vincente David Montano also had an airsoft pistol, police said in a tweet that showed a gun recovered at the scene. Such a weapon can fire plastic or BB pellets. Nashville police spokesman Don Aaron said Montano had been reported missing to Texas police two days ago and they had notified authorities in Tennessee.

Montano had been committed to a mental institution four times — twice in 2004 and twice in 2007 –, Aaron told reporters. Aaron told reporters that one moviegoer suffered a minor cut on a shoulder from a hatchet before officers killed the suspect. Police chief Steve Anderson said the suspect likely was 29 years old. Earlier, police had described him as a 51-year-old local man. He did have identification on him, Anderson said, but authorities want to check fingerprints to confirm his identity. The wounded man had a superficial injury to his arm, fire department spokesman Brian Haas is reported to have said.

The suspect also had two backpacks with him, Aaron said. The bomb squad destroyed one backpack that contained a “hoax device,” Aaron said.